


On The Road

by mothergoose



Series: Adventures in the Mojave [1]
Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: And Cecil is a spider, Carlos is a pretty butterfly, How do I tag that?, Insect!AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-08
Updated: 2014-08-08
Packaged: 2018-02-12 06:49:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2099673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mothergoose/pseuds/mothergoose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Follow the adventures of Carlos, the newbie butterfly, in the desert settlement of Night Vale, as he explores the many wonders of the desert, discovers the truth behind mysterious giants, and evades the affections of a very hairy spider. Insect!AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	On The Road

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to try a little something different and I had this idea rattling around in my head for a while. So tada! Cute insect AU!

The warm desert air felt wonderful beneath Carlos’ wings as he soared across the flat land. For as far as Carlos could see, large scrubs, spindly cacti, and bright, pretty flowers dotted the landscape. The sky was a deep blue, contrasting nicely with the sun baked mountains and rock formations. He inhaled the dry air deeply and smiled, thinking of all the different people and places he wanted to see and explore. After spending so much of his life in a crowded city, it was a nice change of pace.

Truthfully, he was looking for a little settlement that kept popping up in conversations with other insects. It was supposed to be in a rather shady valley, earning it the name Night Vale. From what Carlos had learned, it was a bizarre little place, with insects disappearing with no trace, huge dark figures searching through the brush, and bright red lights in the distance. And call Carlos a fool, but that smelled like adventure and, most importantly, exploration. But as the sun got lower in the sky, Carlos began to wonder if he’d ever find this mysterious place or if it even existed at all. Spotting a small pond, a sure sign that there was a community close, the butterfly dropped to the ground. 

Carlos let out a sigh of relief as he finally gave his wings a rest. He winced slightly, massaging his shoulder blades and shaking out the white wings, grumbling, “Man, I must be getting old…” There was a sudden snap of a twig to his right causing him to go rigid, his antennae quivering. A quick whiff of the air revealed no predators and Carlos deemed it safe enough to proceed into the scrubs. ‘Keep focused Carlos… who knows what lives around here?’ he thought to himself, eyeing every stick and leaf. There was still plenty of sunlight out but the orange tipped butterfly certainly didn’t want to be a late afternoon snack. 

Rounding a corner, Carlos heard familiar sounds of life, the soft chittering of other insects conversing. Hopefully, there was a friendly moth or beetle that had an inn or room open, Carlos mused as he hurried forward. So happy was he to get inside some place safe, that he hardly noticed the thud of feet until the very last second. The butterfly cried out as something fuzzy ran into him, throwing them both off balance and into the sand and dirt. 

“Ow…” Carlos groaned, spitting out a few grains of sand and shifting a fuzzy appendage off him. Carlos clamoured to his feet and rubbed his head, while the other bug scrambled to their feet.  
A deep voice exploded, “I am SO sorry! Are you ok? I didn’t hurt your, oh-” 

The butterfly cut his companion off with a wave of his hand. “It’s ok, I’m alright. Actually maybe you can help me? I’m actually looking for some place to stay in...Oh my GOD!” turning to face the other, Carlos screamed so loud that his ears popped. Standing in front of Carlos with eight thick and hairy legs, was a huge spider. A spider that had large, round eyes that were gazing intently at the terrified butterfly, looking him up and down. Carlos could only stare at the long, white fangs that were revealed when the spider smiled, apparently unfazed by Carlos’ shout.

“A place to stay? You must be new!” the spider asked, suddenly very interested in Carlos. Clasping his hands together, the spider cried, “You can stay with me if you’d like! I mean,“ he twirled some hair around his index finger, a blush dusting his cheeks, ”If that’s not too forward!”

“N-no, that’s really, ok. I don’t r-really want to be a bother,“ Carlos furiously shook his head, backing up a bit. The spider followed his steps. They appeared to be alone on the outskirts of the settlement, a fact that unsettled Carlos greatly. “Really! I’ll be f-fine, it’s no, it’s no big deal, haha!”

The spider wouldn’t back down, though. “Are you sure?,” he asked, batting his eyelashes,”I wouldn’t mind and well...You’re really quite pretty.” Carlos though he was going to have a heart attack. This spider wanted to _eat him_. And he’d be damned if that happened.

Thinking fast, Carlos reasoned, “You know, actually, I’d want t-t-to give my business to one of the locals! You know? Help with the economy-”

Perking at the word ‘locals’, the spider suddenly yelped and gazed upwards. “I totally forgot! I’m late for my meeting with Miss Pamela!” The spider looked conflicted for a moment, wringing his hands together before he snapped his fingers. Carlos forced himself to smile as the spider spoke rapidly. “I just remembered that Mama JJ had a few openings next to Rico’s, in town? I’d show you the way but I’m in such a hurry, sorry! Ask anybody, they’ll know where to go.” He glanced nervously towards the sun again. “If you change your mind about staying with me, again, ask anybody where Cecil is. That’s me!” Those fangs made a reappearance. Carlos shoved another smile onto his face, thinking, ‘No way in Hell’. 

Skittering a little, the spider, Cecil, pointed towards a large cactus nearby. “Keep going straight towards that cactus and you’ll get to town. Ok? I’m sorry but I really must go!” And with that, Cecil headed off, back where Carlos had come. The butterfly was too afraid to move and watched as the spider got farther away. Just as Carlos was starting to relax, Cecil turned around and called, “What was your name?” 

The butterfly hesitated for a few seconds, deliberating whether or not it was such a good idea to give his name to somebody that could very well ingest him, before blurting out, “Carlos!”

“Carlos! What a lovely name!” The way Cecil pronounced made Carlos squirm in a not terrible way. Did he really think it was a nice name? Carlos shooed the thought from his mind, chiding himself for being ridiculous. So caught up was he that he nearly missed Cecil waving at him and calling back, “Welcome to Night Vale, Carlos!”

Oh. Well. Carlos numbly waved back to Cecil and turned to stare at the cactus that would lead to town. This settlement was already very interesting.

**Author's Note:**

> Just in case anyone is wondering, Carlos is a Falcate Orangetip butterfly, which are usually found in the eastern US(not in the desert) buuuuuuttttt it really reminded me of him. So tada!
> 
> Cecil is a Carolina Wolf Spider (I figured his fuzzy legs would suffice for fuzzy pants?).
> 
> I'm hoping to do some small snippets and fics in this AU, just to mess around. So what do you think? I would really love some feedback(it's always nice hearing from people!)
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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